Apple is facing the prospect of a substantially larger bill after Taction Technology, the company behind a record-breaking $5.7 billion patent infringement verdict, asked a US federal court to award additional damages and interest.
The latest request could add hundreds of millions of dollars to the amount Apple owes, intensifying the financial fallout from one of the biggest patent disputes in US history.
Taction, a San Diego-based technology company, secured the landmark jury verdict in September after a California federal jury found that Apple had infringed its patents covering haptic feedback technology. The technology enables devices such as iPhones and Apple Watches to deliver tactile sensations through vibrations and other physical responses.
In a court filing, Taction argued that the existing award does not account for all the relevant Apple sales. The jury’s calculation covered sales from 2021 through late March, leaving a subsequent six-month period outside the damages assessment.
The company is now seeking additional compensation for sales during that period, along with interest on the original award.
Taction has asked the court to apply California’s statutory prejudgment interest rate of 7%. Given the size of the verdict, the interest alone could push Apple’s financial exposure considerably higher. The company is also seeking post-judgment interest.
In its filing, Taction maintained that the magnitude of the jury’s award should not be grounds for denying interest, arguing that the additional payment is warranted regardless of the verdict’s unprecedented scale.
Apple, however, is challenging the outcome on multiple fronts. The technology giant has denied infringing Taction’s patents and has said it will appeal the verdict. It has also asked the court to overturn the jury’s decision, setting up another round of arguments over the massive award.
The dispute comes as Apple faces other costly battles over technology patents. Earlier this month, the company was ordered to pay $184.2 million in prejudgment interest to medical-monitoring technology firm Masimo in a separate intellectual property case.
Masimo had secured a $634 million jury award against Apple last year in a dispute involving smartwatch technology, highlighting the growing financial stakes in patent litigation involving the iPhone maker.
For Taction, the latest filing represents an effort to expand an already historic victory. For Apple, the fight is no longer limited to whether the original verdict will survive an appeal. The company must also contend with the possibility that the final financial burden could rise well beyond the $5.7 billion already awarded.
